One of the most versatile grains, rice is often teamed with legumes, and used in everything from soup to desserts. In Southeast Asia, rice is used in soups, curries and vegetable dishes. Rice pilafs are well known in Middle Eastern cuisine, and in the Mediterranean, rice goes into classic dishes such as stuffed grape leaves, risottos and paellas.

White rice is traditionally used in some of these classic recipes but you can substitute the nutritionally superior brown rice and get excellent results. Rice is one of the easiest grains to digest, making it a good choice for those with food allergies. Its protein is readily usable by the body.

Brown rice is more nutritious than polished white rice, supplying more fiber, B-vitamins, calcium, phosphorus, iron, vitamin E, protein and linoleic acid. When cooked, the plump, rounded kernels of short and medium-grain brown rice are soft, moist and slightly sticky. This tendency to cling makes short or medium-grain rice an appropriate choice for croquettes, rice puddings, molded rice rings, and sushi.

Long-grain rice has long, tapered kernels that cook up separate, light, and fluffy, and work well in pilafs, paellas, stuffings, salads, casseroles, and fried rice.

Refined white rice is rice that has been dehulled, refined (the bran and germ removed) and “polished” to a smooth sheen.

Enriched white rice is sprayed with a solution of vitamins after milling, then coated with protein powder. This replaces a few selected nutrients, but polished rice still comes up short when compared to whole grain brown rice.

Basmati rice is an aromatic, creamy white, long-grain rice grown in the Himalayan foothills of India and Pakistan, and more recently, in California. The preferred rice for Indian cooking, its special fragrance and nutty flavor is delicious in Western dishes as well.

Texmati, or brown basmati rice is a cross between long-grain brown rice and basmati rice.

Sushi rice is a short-grain white rice that cooks to a rather sticky consistency, making it an excellent choice for sushi and nori rolls. Sweet rice should not be substituted for Sushi rice. Sushi rice cooking time is the same as other white rice.

Sweet rice, also called glutinous rice, has a high starch content that makes it very sticky when cooked. It is not an everyday table rice. Traditionally it is served at weddings and New Year’s celebrations, and used in a variety of sweets and snacks, including dumplings, molded rice puddings, and the chewy Japanese rice cake called mochi. Sweet rice can also be used in soups.

Wehani rice, a product of Lundberg Farms in California, was developed from seed that came originally from India. Its huge amber grains are similar to wild rice in texture, to brown rice in flavor, and smell much like popcorn when cooking.

Wild rice is dark brown, slender, and even longer than long-grain rice. Wild rice isn’t a rice at all, but the seed of an aquatic grass related more closely to corn than to rice. Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, California and the Rocky Mountain regions all produce wild rice. Much of the rice is now grown in paddies and harvested by machine. Most of Minnesota’s crop grows wild in northern lakes and is harvested by Native Americans using traditional hand harvesting methods.

Wild rice is substantially more nutritious. It has twice the protein, four times as much phosphorus, eight times as much thiamin, and twenty times as much riboflavin as other rice varieties. Its nutty, earthy flavor complements game and fowl. Mix wild rice with brown rice or white rice for pilafs and cold salads, and add it to soups or stuffings.

Japonica is a short-grain black rice originating in Japan. Japonica has a sticky texture and grassy flavor. It is found primarily in gourmet rice blends combined with brown rice.

Storage Tips

To keep rice indefinitely, store uncooked rice in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. Before cooking, pick over rice and remove pebbles, bits of chaff, and other foreign objects.

Cooking Information

Most rice may be cooked in the following manner:

1. Pick over the rice to remove any pebbles or foreign objects.
   
2. Rinse the rice with cool water. If you don‘t have a fine sieve, just run cool water on the rice in the pot. Slowly pour off the water and the chaff will float away.
   
3. Add the indicated amount of water to the pan, cover and bring to a boil.
   
4. Reduce heat, simmer and cook for the indicated time. Leave the cover on and do not stir.
   
5. If rice is too moist, remove the cover and continue cooking over low heat to allow the water to evaporate. Be careful, it burns easily!

I found this excellent information while shopping in the Moscow Idaho Food Co-op — an amazing place full of great food and people.

© Twin Cities Natural Food Co-ops.